The Third Installment of "Ask Jim" - June 10, 2014

First of all, I’d like to apologize for the “unplanned
hiatus” of Ask Jim during the spring. Things just got busy
with working to get the Student Success Initiative passed –
maybe the single most impactful financial action to occur for Titan
Athletics since the University was approved in 1957 – and
several other issues that required a lot of time. That said, I will
work to get back on track answering the Ask Jim questions –
aiming to answer questions every other month. So, here
goes:

From Frank Otsuka (Santa Ana, Calif.)

Q: Now that the baseball season is finished,
what types of improvements can we look forward to for next year? I
am interested in what facilities are in line for renovation... I
read where there will be an influx of funds coming in from the new
student success fees, will this be available for this coming
year?

A: Frank, thanks for asking a question that I
know many other Titan Supporters are curious about!

Let me provide a little background first. This past spring the
University conducted a consultative process on a Student Success
Imitative (SSI). As approved by the Student Fee Committee,
President García and CSU Chancellor White, it
includes $60 annually, per student, for athletic facilities. The
amount will be phased in over a three-year period, starting in the
2014-2015 academic year.

To date our coaching staffs and facility and event managers have
developed a list of potential facility projects and improvements.
Within the next few weeks a sub-committee of coaches and
administrators will meet to prioritize the potential facility
projects and improvements. Then, in the early fall, we will make a
presentation to the Student Fee Committee explaining our
methodology and plans for the funding. After that, we plan to start
implementing the plan – realizing that it may take a decade
or more to complete the entire list of projects.

Some of the projects that our coaches and facility and event
managers have designated – and this is only a small
sample – include (non-prioritized):

Locker room improvements for several sports

New video/score board for Titan Stadium (Soccer stadium)

Renovations to the entrance/foyer to Titan Gym

Lighting improvements to meet high-definition television
standards for fields, stadiums and courts

Removal of poles holding backstop net at Goodwin Field

Concession stand improvements

Renovations of public bathrooms

Again, these are just some of the projects being
considered and ultimately prioritized.

And it’s very important to note, that Titan Athletics made
a commitment to the student leadership during the SSI approval
process, that lighting the grass fields (next to Titan House and
north of Titan Gym) would be a very high priority project. This
project will be very impactful on the students actually paying the
fee, because the grass fields are utilized by the student body,
club sports, and KLS classes.

Lastly, we will be exploring the financing possibilities that
could enable us to pursue more renovations and improvements in the
near-term while spreading payments out over several years.

We will provide more information in future columns regarding
facility projects being conducted because of the SSI fee, after the
project prioritization is complete and the plan has been presented
to the Student Fee Committee in the fall of 2014.

From Jose Galindo (Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.)
Q: How do Title IX laws apply at schools with
non-scholarship FCS football, for example the University of San
Diego? For those still dreaming of football like myself, can't this
be a more attainable option?

A: Jose, thanks for asking a question that
I’m sure others think about too. The reality is Title IX laws
apply for any entity receiving federal funds – whether
it’s a high school district, a junior college, a Division I
program, or as you ask about in your question, a FCS football
(previously known as Div I-AA) athletic program.

At the FCS level, a football program can provide 65
scholarships. So, if an institution started (or re-instituted) a
FCS football program, it would need to start a corresponding number
of women’s sports programs that would provide 65 scholarships
for women. With In-State scholarships costing more than $20,000
each, the scholarship cost alone would be in excess of $2.6
million. Then you’d have to add coaching salaries, supplies,
uniforms, recruiting, support staff (additional trainers, academic
staff and equipment staff at a minimum) and a travel budget. Adding
all these, for FCS football and likely three women’s programs
would conservatively be another $2-$3 million.

And, as I stated in my October 2nd Ask
Jim, another reason to wait before attempting to start up
football – at the FCS or FBS level – would be the
potential changes at the NCAA level being discussed by certain
conferences (Big 10, SEC, Big 12, etc.). These changes may make it
more or less practical for an institution to consider starting up a
football program (or re-instituting one) – particularly if
there are changes to current revenue streams and/or new
restrictions added that might make an FCS or FBS program less
attractive as an option.

Bottom line is, whether we compete at the FBS or FCS level for
football, we would need a dedicated revenue stream that would
create approximately $5-$6 million a year. That would mean an
endowment of $100-$120 million, or some other permanent revenue
stream to cover the expenses of the football program and the likely
three women’s sports that would also have to be started to
comply with Title IX.

From James Witherspoon (Brea, Calif.)
Q: Do you plan on turning the track and field program
into a very competitive one?

A: James, the short answer is yes!

The reality is over the years of severe budget crisis our
men’s & women’s track, field and cross country
programs, and the women’s tennis program, were impacted the
most. With the track, field and cross country programs for the
recent 2013-2014 academic year operating with approximately 35
percent of the scholarships that are allowed for those five
sports.

With the recent passing of the Student Success Initiative, which
will be phased in over the next three years, we plan to bring the
track, field and cross country programs to 100% of the NCAA maximum
allowed for those five sports. This alone will greatly increase our
competitive success.

In addition, the track and field practice area will be
undergoing significant renovations starting sometime this summer.
As I mentioned in my October 2nd Ask Jim, the project
scope will include:

In addition to these facility improvements and scholarship
funding, this past year we added another full-time coach to the
staff and we have provided a part-time administrative assistant to
help with logistics for the five track, field and cross country
programs. We are also setting competitive goals for each program,
which are incorporated into staff evaluations (we are doing this
for all sports).

So, while the short answer to your questions is
“yes!,” now you have a better idea of the details and
depth behind the answer! Look for our track, field and cross
country programs to improve competitively and within a
three-to-five year period, be poised to win a Big West Conference
Championship!

From Frank Otsuka (Costa Mesa, Calif.)
Q: I read that the ROTC unit on campus is now the
neighbor of the Titan Athletic "Titan House", any possibility that
there might be an ROTC 'night' or something like that to get them
to games?

A: Frank, thanks for your question.
Actually, for the Titan Baseball series versus Hawai’i (April
25-27), we did have “Armed Forces Weekend” at Goodwin
Field (the weekend was coordinated by Becca Dobbs, our Marketing
and Promotions Assistant). Past and present military
personnel that showed their military ID received two tickets for
each game. In addition, at Sunday's game (4/27/14) the ROTC Honor
Guard presented the colors and a helicopter landed on the field
pregame with a Wounded Warrior – Chief Warrant Officer 4
Malcolm Campbell – who threw out the ceremonial first
pitch.

In addition, Aaron Tapper, our Assistant Athletic Director for
Marketing has introduced himself to the program supervisors at CSUF
ROTC, and we look to build our relationship with our “new
neighbors” (note to those of you that haven’t been to
the Titan House lately, CSUF ROTC was recently located in the old
weight room area just north of the Titan House).

From William Schuster (Newport Beach,
Calif.)Q: I was wondering why the Cal State
Fullerton women’s tennis team doesn't have an account with
statbroadcast.com for a live stat feed of the matches for
supporters who can’t attend?

A: Will, thank you for the great question and
support of our women’s tennis program.
Currently, Cal State Fullerton’s website partner is Presto
Sports, and live stats for tennis has yet to be integrated into its
system. I can tell you that Presto is working on enhancing its
tennis coverage by developing box scores for the first time this
year, while working on adding a team and conference stats platform
for the future, similar to what you would find for such sports as
basketball, soccer, etc.
In fact, this year was the first season that the Athletic
Department purchased the StatCrew system for our tennis program,
which will aid us in keeping current stats as well as developing a
thorough history of the program.

Partnering with StatBroadcast would come at an additional cost
for the Athletics Department, and while we have made many
improvements at the Titan Tennis Courts, including resurfacing the
courts, we do not yet have a facility that would allow live
coverage from the site.
We are certainly excited about the future of our women’s
tennis program, and in the upcoming year will explore additional
options to give our fans a way to follow our matches live.

Thank you to everyone who submitted questions for our
third edition! If you wish to submit a question for our next
installment, please click here.